Diamonstein, Face Heatedly Square Off

October 26, 1995|By BARRY FLYNN Daily Press

NEWPORT NEWS — If voter interest had matched the excitement that two candidates for the House of Delegates brought to their debate Tuesday night, the Junior Woman's Club of Hilton Village would have been rocking.

It wasn't. Instead, Democratic Del. Alan Diamonstein and Republican challenger Allen Face were more or less left alone to their passions as they argued, raised their voices, condescended and fell just a hair shy of calling one another liars.

With less than two weeks before an election to decide which one will represent Newport News' 94th District in the House of Delegates, about 30 people - including family members and campaign volunteers of each candidate - attended a meeting the club sponsored.

A still outraged Diamonstein chastised his opponent for the erroneous flier that Face prepared and distributed throughout the district and which misstated Diamonstein's voting record.

"It makes a difference that you tell the truth," Diamonstein said.

Face acknowledged that "I made an error on the piece and did not put the complete references" for bills he had cited. But he repeated his claim that the flier accurately reflects Diamonstein's views even if it's wrong about specific votes, something Diamonstein disputes.

Face adhered to the strongest anti-abortion positions possible under current Supreme Court rulings. He favors a mandatory 24-hour waiting period for women seeking an abortion and the requirement for parental notification and consent when a minor seeks an abortion.

Diamonstein said he, too, favors parental notification, but said he holds out for a "judicial bypass" that would allow a judge to intervene sometimes, such as when a minor abused by a parent is seeking an abortion. "I am pro-choice," Diamonstein said.

Diamonstein also tweaked Face for his conservative views about reducing the role of government in most spheres "but he wants government to tell a woman what she can do with her body."

Face said he supported Gov. George Allen's proposal for charter schools that would let groups run schools with public money. But he said charter schools should just be an intermediate step back to neighborhood schools and an end to busing.

"If your kid rides by a school to get to school, he's going to the wrong school," Face said.

Diamonstein said he preferred to see the results of a state study of what effects charter schools would have on the public school system before making a decision.

Diamonstein also said he strongly opposed the new law that allows virtually every non-felon to carry a concealed gun. Face did not state a position on it.